The Lioness With the Gentle Touch

Popular and charming, Argentina’s captain Magdalena Aicega and her famous team mates have helped their country establish a formidable reputation. She tells Graciela Ortiz* how she sees her role as captain....

(place mouse over images for captions)

Of all the girls in the Argentine team, she is both the most glamorous and the most charming - hence, she is also the most popular member of the squad.

She appears on TV commercials and on magazine ads, and even hosts an ESPN show. Everyone, in short, seems to be after her, an icon of successful Argentine women, an athlete whose femininity was not shed for the sake of sports triumph. She is also an excellent defender for the world champions. With 187 caps and 45 goals, most of them from penalty corners. After the resignation of the legendary Karina Masotta, Magdalena Aicega took over as the new captain of The Lionesses following Argentina’s gold medal triumph at the 2002 World Cup in Perth. The players and the coaching staff chose her with Cecilia Rognoni as vice captain. 'I’m very proud of being some sort of beacon, a guiding light for the team,' says Aicega, popularly referred to as Maguie.

She believes that a captain, be it from a national team or from a club, must have an excellent  elationship with the coaching staff and teammates so as to properly transmit players’ wishes and demands.

'The team’s cohesion is also very important, 90 percent of our group is made up of girls who have been playing together for many years. We share our problems and together we seek solutions and the best ideas for the team,' comments Aicega, who graduated as nutritionist and works in sport.

'Being team captain is not difficult for me, because I can count on the group’s support,' she says. Although Aicega leads the Argentine team tipped as favourites for Athens, she feels no extra pressure saying 'most players and myself are leaders.

Thanks to their support I have no problem making decisions when necessary and the team’s extensive experience means the decision making process involves all of us.'

'We are playing individually and we are a team,' Aicega said during the women's Pan-American Cup final against the US last month in Barbados. The Lionesses roared in to action after half-time, displaying their considerable talent to defeat the United States 3-0 and secure an automatic berth in the 2006 World Cup in Madrid, Spain.

. 'I feel I have the girls’ support and approval,' she says. 'The position I play in allows me to see many things. I don't like my team to nag the umpires - the captain is the only person allowed to do the talking, and only at the right time,' she says. 'This is why I admire Australia, regardless of what the umpires charge, the girls will never protest,' Aicega says. The current Argentine team have, no doubt, talented players, but Luciana Aymar and Cecilia Rognoni clearly stand out as two exceptional players. 'Lucha (Aymar) can be likened to Diego Maradona in his prime,' Aicega comments. 'Playing alongside them is a huge pleasure, and we all enjoy watching them.' she adds. 'It is only logical that we all look to give the ball to Aymar because she is capable of dribbling past five players, but neither do we ever think that she can win matches on her own.'

As for the younger players in the team, the Argentine captain says: 'The ones with more experience show the way to the others, a strategy that has so far worked very well. We want to show them that wearing the Argentine jersey does not come easy.'

It takes a combination of strong and sensitive leadership to deal with her more illustrious team mates,

Aymar, Rognoni and Vanina Oneto but Aicega takes it in her stride. 'Lucha and Ceci manage their fame as two of the world’s outstanding players very well and Vanina, in addition, handles the press very skillfully. But if one player’s celebrity has a negative impact on the team, the group quickly points this out.' In Aicega’s opinion, team mate Aymar ' is the best player in the world. She added:'It’s always a pleasure to watch her - I admire her humility and respect her enormously.'

Pressure, she argues, must be equally distributed among all players. The rest of the squad have an excellent skill level and we need to take advantage of every player’s strengths.

Aicega, 30, started to play at the age of seven and says that she is enjoying the sport more than ever. 'Experience is very important, and the group gives me a lot of motivation, but for me the best moment is always when I step out on to the pitch.'

Despite a distinguished 23 year playing career, thoughts of retirement are far from the captain’s mind. 'I would like to continue playing for one or two more years, but even if I leave the national team I would like to continue playing for my club,' she adds.

Aicega’s sporting ambition is to win an Olympic gold, and when it comes to personal matters she would like to raise a family. When she relaxes she likes to 'stay at home quietly, with my dogs, enjoying a nice siesta.

Usually I take advantage of my free time to do all the things I can't when I'm training or working.'

Magdalena Aicega Fact File

Magdalena Aicega first represented Argentina at the Junior World Cup in 1993 in Barcelona, Spain, where Argentina won gold. The following year she played for the senior team, finishing second in the World Championship in Ireland.

Aicega was awarded the Silver Olimpia (the most prestigious local prize, awarded by Argentina’s Sports Journalists Association) in 1998 and 2003. She was also nominated for the FIH's Best Player of the Year in 1999.

Birth date: November 1st, 1973
Position: Defender
Nickname: Maguie
Caps: 187
Goals: 45

Achievements: Silver medal in Sydney 2000; gold medal in Perth 2002; gold medal in Champions Trophy 2001; silver medal in Champions Trophy 2002; Gold medals in Pan American Games 1995,1999 and 2003; gold in Pan American Cups 2001 and 2004. Gold medal at junior World Cup, Barcelona 1993.
Favourite meal: barbecue
Favourite movie: Scarface and Scent of a Woman
Favourite music: Joaquín Sabina, Rodrigo, Maná, Bruce Springsteen, Los Redonditos de Ricota.

* Graciela H. Ortiz is the Buenos Aires Herald sports editor and www.cityhockey.net columnist.